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By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
To the military, Acosta is a terrorist as defined in the Aquino government’s military campaign Oplan Bayanihan. But to many friends and colleagues from the University of the Philippines, he is nothing of the sort. He is a poet, songwriter, and activist.
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
They met at a time when the Philippines was awakening to a revolution that sought to empower the poor against their exploiters. He was a priest, she was a nun, and the time was 1971, a year before the dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos declared martial law.
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
A new poverty index that reconfigured the method of determining the extent of poverty in the Philippines has been criticized as deceptive and can be exploited by the government to declare that life has become better under the Aquino administration, critics said the other day.
From the time of the raid and their subsequent arrest to the nightly interrogations, they were told that they did not have rights. But the "Morong 43" struggled on internally and against their captors, interrogators, and eventually their prison custodians.
A year ago today, the military and police illegally arrested and detained the "Morong 43" health workers. While most of them have been freed and are now trying to pick up the pieces of their lives, many still have nightmares and still feel vulnerable and exposed to danger.
Sidebar: 'Morong 43' Recall the Nightmare and the Struggle | Dr. Alexis Montes: ‘The Journey Is Not Yet Ended’ | Related Stories: Lawyers Push for Immediate Release of One of Three Remaining 'Morong 43' Detainees | What Newsbreak Failed to Report About the ‘Morong 5' | More 'Morong 43' stories, photos and video
Today, Feb. 7, Bulatlat marks its 10th anniversary. While we have every reason to celebrate this occasion, it is important to point out that the conditions that we set out to chronicle a decade ago that were, in fact, our raison d'être -- economic backwardness, human-rights abuses, landlessness, political persecution, corruption, to name a few -- still persist. That said, here's to the next 10 years -- and beyond!
Read managing editor Benjie Oliveros's piece on the 10 years of Bulatlat
By MARYA SALAMAT
Many hospitals are charging new nurses fees in exchange for work, training and experience, which are required for nursing jobs abroad. This offshoot of the government’s exploitative labor-export policy needs to stop, according to the Gabriela Women’s Party.
By RONALYN V. OLEA
It would seem to many Filipinos that the peace negotiations between the government and the Communists have achieved nothing significant. Truth is, both panels have signed several important documents that should move the process forward. Would the Aquino administration genuinely commit to these earlier agreements?
By RONALYN V. OLEA
A group of human-rights lawyers has vowed to take what it called a "legal offensive" to curb impunity and advance the cause of human rights in the Philippines.
Sidebar: Photo Contest Highlights Fight Vs. Impunity in Philippines
As part of its campaign against impunity, a group of human-rights lawyers held a photo contest titled “Shoot!” with the theme “Capturing the Struggle for Justice of Human Rights Victims.”
By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Way before Tuesday’s demolition of the houses owned by informal settlers in Corazon de Jesus, a poor community in San Juan City, the former mayor and now congressman, JV Ejercito, had declared that the US White House was the inspiration for the new city hall that he would like to build in his city.
By CHERYLL FIEL
To prevent rebels from gaining ground in Toril, the Philippine Army established a military detachment in a village and sent out more soldiers. The soldiers are called “Peace and Development Teams.” But residents find the soldiers’ conduct rather unbecoming of the new tag by which they are now called.
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL
and CHERYLL FIEL
In Jones town, Isabela, residents complain that the soldiers would present themselves as New People’s Army guerrillas and try to extract information from them. In Toril, Davao, the military organized "peace and development teams," whose functions apparently include wooing teenage girls in the community.
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño said agriculture agencies and government-ran agricultural schools are mandated by the law to promote organic farming. So why are they promoting genetically modified crops like Bt eggplant?
Pinaglabanan Residents' Last Stand
Pinaglabanan Folk Fight for Their Homes
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO
Environmentalists and Palawan leaders praise Dr. Gerry Ortega’s contribution to efforts to protect the environment and help the poor and marginalized.
By TUDLA PRODUCTIONS
Police and snipers have been sent by the San Juan City government to help in the demolition of an estimated 800 homes in Barangay Corazon de Jesus. The residents have set up a barricade to try to stop the destruction of their homes today. Follow the live updates here.
Mendiola Massacre survivor Teresita Arjona, whose husband Danilo died with 12 others in the carnage, vividly remembers what happened that day 24 years ago. She is unlikely to ever forget, she says, because the reasons why they marched to Malacañang then are the same reasons why farmers continue to hold protests and rallies and why so many others have been killed.
Mendiola Massacre survivor Pedro Gonzalez knows by heart the crimes the governments that followed the Marcos dictatorship committed against the Filipino people. These, he says, make him remember what he is fighting for.
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